A comprehensive guide to interviewing: reducing bias and noise
Written by Leah Jones, 25 May 2024
Mastering the art of effective interviewing is a fundamental skill for any manager looking to build a successful team. Arguably the most challenging aspect of the four-step recruitment process, interviews hold the key to ensuring you recruit the right person for a role. When done correctly, they can save you time, money, and resources during the hiring process and in managing recruited talent in the future.
The challenge in conducting effective interviews derives from the pitfalls of being a human. We typically base decisions on our gut feel, which can be easily influenced by noise and bias—particularly when judging a fellow human. A structured interview process should help combat these external factors to provide a solid foundation for effective decision-making.
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Before you launch into interviewing for a new position, it’s important to get clarity on the role and understand what you’re looking for. This falls under the Planning stage in the broader recruitment process, which you can learn more about here.
During this time, we’d recommend listing 8 to 9 competencies max, which we define as the behavioural, thinking (cognitive) abilities and technical attributes essential to be successful in the role. Try to be selective here, as you’ll refer to this list throughout the following steps in the interview process. You’ll also want to create a rubric to score candidates on these competencies after each interview. A simple spreadsheet will do, or you can use our template here.
For now, we’re going to focus on how to conduct our recommended interview process, which follows three simple steps: Screen, Assess and Score. Read on for recommended questions, assessment criteria, and free templates to help you integrate this tried-and-tested process into your hiring journey.
Step 1: Screen
Screening calls should be punchy conversations lasting no longer than 30 minutes. They should aim to filter out candidates who do not meet the minimum requirements for the role. These can be logistical requirements, such as salary expectations, location, visa requirements, working hours, or whether the candidate desires a hybrid or work-from-home set-up. You’ll also want to use this opportunity to assess if there are any early red flags against your company culture.
It’s important to ask only open questions that prompt candidates to speak freely and provide an account of themselves. We’d recommend asking questions such as:
- Tell me about your career to date.
- What motivates you?
- What has been the most memorable position you have held, and why?
- What is the working environment that you like to work in?
Top tip: Candidates are looking for the right company and job as much as you’re looking for the best candidate to hire. Screening calls allow both parties to get to know each other. As the employer, you should be prepared to answer questions about the company’s culture, policies and team structure.
Step 2: Assessment
For the purpose of this article, we are focusing on an interview-based approach to assess a candidate, as this is typically easier for a startup or SME to deploy. (Don’t worry, we’ll discuss supporting processes - such as psychometric tests or technical assignments - in a future article!) Ultimately, the goal of the assessment stage is to identify if a candidate has the competencies and skills to execute the tasks and outcomes required for the role.
Equipped with your list of desired competencies, your line of questioning should start broad and slowly hone in on more tailored questions as you seek to validate competencies and skills. Think of it like a game of bingo; instead of numbers, you have a card filled with competencies, and you’re waiting for a candidate to call them out or imply them in their responses.
Use the candidate’s CV as the basis, and start by discussing each position with the same opening question, such as, “Tell me what you were hired to do in this role.” The goal here is to set the context for the following questions, stay open-minded, and not lead the candidate into an answer. Ideally, their response should be full of examples of the skills and competencies you are looking for.
If they do not demonstrate your desired experience or behavioural traits in their first answer, that’s okay. Rephrase the question to be more focused, but without being leading. For example, “How did you drive business performance in this role?”
You can also follow up with questions to validate specific skill sets, such as, “Tell me about the tools you used to drive customer retention,” or, “In this campaign, can you tell me how you optimised each channel?” Wherever possible, we’d recommend focusing on one competency at a time in your line of questioning, and only moving on once you’re satisfied with the responses you have been given.
Top tip: Avoid direct questions like, “Tell me about a time you had to manage conflict.” These are considered leading and often result in text-book answers that are worthless.
Step 3: Score
The rubric should be your source of truth throughout the interview process (you can download our template here). Set aside time after each interview to score each candidate out of 5 on the competencies and values you outlined in your prep stage. This will keep you focused and enable you to compare like for like when you review the candidates.
Objectivity is key to a fair and effective interview process, and managers should, wherever possible, seek to establish a clear, structured approach to interviewing candidates to reduce noise and bias. In doing so, you can have confidence that you are making decisions based on a candidate’s merit and alignment with your desired competencies and values.
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